Ok guys, i just picked this car up, it runa really damn good and it seems that the trans shifts nicely and gos into gear fine, but the shifter may have a little too much play in it? I am located near chicago, il...near midway airport if there is anyone who has an idea of what it could be or wants to give me a hand i could toss some cash to them...?? Here is the problem...first gear runs out great and pulls hard, second does the same but at the end of the gear if i run it out the slight grinding starts...then when shifting into 3rd around 30-ish mph 3rd gear has a loud grinding noise like almost slamming an automatic into park before coming to a stop or not being engaged fully but it does initally pull hard until the grinding starts, i tried to gas my way out of it but it just seems to get worse, so i babied it home and now im out of ideas. I can run 3rd gear steady at about 30 mph and if i give it anymore gas the grind starts and wont stop until the rpm slows down it seems, it even continues doing it after i engage the clutch and toss it in neutral until i nearly come to a stop. I also seem to hear these disc spinning noises that happen when it is not grinding and it resembles 2 metal discs spinning opposite ways of one another in shirt bursts but it goes away...seems to do it when i hold the throttle steady in 3rd to make it move without grinding... I know absolutely JACK SHIT about these cars or trans', i dont know what the issue could be or how to check what it could be.
Not really enough info for a decent comment. Will the car make the same noise at 30 mph in second gear? Is it much more pronounced in third gear? Can you get the rear end up on a good set of jack stands (block the front wheels) and run it up to speed and try to determine if the noise is actually from the trans, or possibly from the rear end? If pushing the clutch in does not help/change the noise, it is somewhere between the output shaft/bearing of the trans and the rear end/axle bearings.
it is definitely coming from the trans area under the floor cover plate, i have no carpet in the car so it is very clear where it is coming from, it will make the noise in 2nd but only at the top end of the gear before it is about to run out but not nearly as bad...you kinda just feel it in the 3nd gear, it gets loud in 3rd...sound like teeth grinding or not being in gear fully? only thing is that the car pulls hard in 3rd...this is frustrating for sure. the car drives very nice in 1st/2nd and its smooth besides the 3rd issue and such
Has the car been sitting for awhile? Front U-joint might be seized or bad. What year Dodge do you have?
1940, it is not in bad shape at all, it has been gone through somewhere, new brakes & brakelines, fuel lines, tank cleaned, new carb, rebuilt master, air cleaner, interior, and there basically is no rust on the car, garage kept..it hasnt sat from what i have seen and can tell it runs and drives well, just didnt get the car up to enough speed when buying/test driving it i guess...but for the cost i couldnt pass it up either way
Welcome from another 40 dodge owner. I have a tudor sedan I'm in the process of working on. To bad you didn't live closer, I have a 3-speed tranny out of a 40 dodge I'd sell, never shipped anything like that. Look up 40 dodge on the bay, there is some nos trans stuff listed there. Good luck with your 40, looks to be in very nice shape. later shawn
would low fluid cause the issue just in 3rd gear though or would i see signs of the issue in all gears and speeds/rpms? i couldnt imagine the fluid not being full due to all of the other things the last owner did...the oil was topped off, fresh and all. i will look into this though, im guessing i have to pull the floor inspection plate and there is a filler under there?
im gonna look into the fluid thing, and ill attempt to get under the car and check for anything loose or goofy looking/out of place type of things and if i run out of options i will probably look into the newer auto trans adapter swap and pricing i dont know jack shit about these trans' or manual trans at that, i can drive them but when it comes time to repair/replace anything having to do with them, i will pay to have it done when talking manual trans' and such
My 55 does some thing to what your describing.. Mine is low on fluid, .. so was the first tranny.. but it was to late.. 2nd and 3rd mashed....
well i have only driven the car roughly 5 miles? as it is and once i noticed it was doing it i babied it and got it home on low idle and speed, i will look into it, what type of fluid am i going to be using on this trans? i know its not typical trans fluid...it is gear oil or something correct?
I would be looking at the transmission output bearing if you are confident it is coming out of the trans. If it is in second and high gear, at about 30mph, you need to start looking at what they have in common. The bearing is the first thing that comes to mind. The ujoint could make some noise, but not usually the crunching noise at speed-but definately worth looking at.
the only pain i see is that i know nothing of the ordeal as to taking this thing apart and or knowing what im looking for to tell if something is incorrect/damaged or worn! then the whole searching and hunting down what i need and hoping it is correct and i was correct on the parts, lol - this sucks!
The reason I asked about fluid is that car's obviously not been operated much with that condition. You might be suprised how often people put transmissions or rearends on the road with no fluid. OK, so what to do if there's fluid.... First, make sure the shifter linkage is kosher, and it's not levers flopping around trying to put it into 2 gears at once. Does everything check out? If so, that's OK, you didn't waste your time, you'll need that linkage knowledge when you replace the transmission. Pretty much any 3 speed in the world can be bought for $150. Replace a couple bearings in the current trans and you're out $50 and 2 afternoons. It's easy to see why most backyard builders replace instead of repair. My best guess, the gears in your transmission ride on a couple of shafts, and one of those shafts is moving around. Could be a bearing, could be the shaft, could even have a wallowed out case. So get a known good one and bolt er in. Manual transmission swap is not a huge deal. Case of beer the first time, but after 2 or 3 you'll be down to a sixer. If that car uses a carrier bearing in the driveshaft, oil the hell out of it and testdrive to see if the symptom is minimized. They can do funky things and convince ya it's the transmission or rearend. They also dry out real bad when cars sit long term good luck
yeah im probably gonna end up swapping it out for an auto from a newer car, gonna call a few trans adapter sites i have read up on here and search through google tomorrow morning and get some more info the shifter linkage is a little loose i guess you could say? it doesnt flop around but seems that might be a little play but i dont know exactly what is considered too much, or any if there is at all, i have no exp. in any of this. like i said, i have no exp in manual trans...so swapping one out probably isnt the toughest job but if it requires any work pulling the clutch assembly apart, my car will be in piecs and never leave the garage driveable again for the most part.
Nice looking project you have there. Is the tranny a straight 3 speed or does it have the fluid drive. If you have fluid drive you already have an automatic. Maybe your best bet would be to go to www.p15-d24.com and register on the forum there is an enormous amount of knowledge of your car there. I have a 48 and that forum has helped me a lot. Brendan.
Are you sure it's not just the linkage not going far enough into third? It could, like someone else said, be suffering from an input shaft bearing failure. Not too unusual if the trans is not lined up perfectly withe the engine crankshaft. That sometimes happens with a trans/bellhousing swap after driving a number of miles with a misalignment. It only takes a few thousandths out-of-whack to do some long term damage that will show up farther down the road- - like today. Usally if you get it into gear far enough, the engagement "dogs" by the syncros, that have a slight angle cut into the mating surfaces, will help hold the trans in gear. IF the input shaft has been running even slightly angled (even by only a few thousandths), with a little wearing-in, those "dogs" can start "walking" the trans out of gear. Let the grinding happen a number of times to round off a few edges, and it can become a hopeless cause trying to keep the dogs engaged. If it happens only in third, then it's the engagement between the input shaft and the sliding ring gear (I forgot the name) at the very front. That can often be fixed without a total rebuild. If both second and third act funny, then you also have a loose second gear (play between the "2nd idler" bushing and the mainshaft) or have countershaft troubles that mean a total bottom-to-top rebuild. SO- If you can't fix it really really fast by a simple shifter adjustment, it sounds like the trans might need a new input bearing, input shaft, and a fresh bellhousing alignment with a new crank pilot bushing. If it affects second gear too, then a total rebuild is needed. After re-reading your post, third paragraph, I think your trans is probably already gone....
I already signed up for that site, i have been waiting for them to activate my account so i can post on there, multiple emails to admins and site owner and still nothing.
So the trans could be shot even though it goes into all the gears fine with no grinding, and pulls hard in all three gears but seems as though maybe something is loose or possibly not engaging fully? i need to check fluid and get under the car to if i can see anything loose or not connected or even broke...if the fluid is low what type of fluid is correct for these? i do know that the trans is not a fluid drive as i tried the third gear let off clutch trick, it died instantly.
Also make sure the transmission is securely attached. Sometimes when rear mounts break or get loose the transmission will shift under certain load conditons and either move the shift arms, or cause funny noises from the driveshaft/output shaft area.
Run the engine for a minute. Drain some trans fluid out of the bottom plug into a small cup. Pour it into a shallow pan or on a metal workbench. That will tell you a story.
90 or 90-140 gear oil. Check - lube the ujoints be amazed how much noise a bad ujoint can make. Forget the auto trans ,car would be a total dog. Get on Ebay and buy a "Motor's" repair manual the covers your car's year best investment you will make.
fluid is full to the edge, i cleaned up the trans and i noticed there was a cable that gets pushed in and out when you push the shifter towards and away and there are 2 oversized nuts on there being used as spacers? i know they not supposed to be there, everything looks to be in good shape. can anyone identify the trans and tell me why those bolts are there behind the adjuster bolt? could that cable be stretched out and they did this to take up slack?
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